Basalt

Comendite

Basalt and Comendite

Basalt

Comendite

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Definition

Basalt is a common extrusive igneous rock formed by the rapid cooling of basaltic lava exposed at or very near the surface of Earth

Comendite is a hard, peralkaline igneous rock, a type of light blue grey rhyolite

History

Origin

Egypt

Italy

Discoverer

Georgius Agricola

Unknown

Etymology

From Late Latin Basaltes (variant of basanites ), very hard stone, which was imported from Ancient Greek Basanites

Comendite derives its name from the area of Le Commende on San Pietro Island in Italy

Class

Igneous Rocks

Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock

Durable Rock, Hard Rock

Family

Group

Volcanic

Other Categories

Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Medium Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Texture

Glassy, Massive, Porphyritic, Scoriaceous, Vesicular

Porphyritic

Color

Black, Brown, Light to Dark Grey

Blue, Bluish - Grey

Maintenance

Less

Durability

Durable

Water Resistant

✔ ✘

Scratch Resistant

✔ ✘

Stain Resistant

✔ ✘

Wind Resistant

✔ ✘

Acid Resistant

✔ ✘

Appearance

Dull and Soft

Foliated

Uses

Architecture

Interior Uses

Floor Tiles, Homes, Hotels, Kitchens

Countertops, Decorative Aggregates, Interior Decoration

Exterior Uses

As Building Stone, Paving Stone, Garden Decoration, Office Buildings

As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Garden Decoration

Other Architectural Uses

Curbing, Whetstones

Curbing

Industry

Construction Industry

Arrowheads, As Dimension Stone, Cobblestones, Cutting Tool, Rail Track Ballast, Roadstone

Building houses or walls, Cement Manufacture, Construction Aggregate, for Road Aggregate, Landscaping, Making natural cement, Raw material for the manufacture of mortar

Medical Industry

Antiquity Uses

Artifacts, Monuments

Artifacts

Other Uses

Commercial Uses

An Oil and Gas Reservoir, Commemorative Tablets, Creating Artwork, Used in aquariums

Cemetery Markers

Types

Alkaline Basalt, Boninite, High Alumina Basalt, Mid Ocean Ridge Basalt (MORB), Tholeiitic Basalt, Basaltic trachyandesite, Mugearite and Shoshonite

Rhyolite

Features

Has High structural resistance against erosion and climate, Very fine grained rock

Very fine grained rock, It is One of the Oldest, Strongest and Hardest Rock

Archaeological Significance

Monuments

Famous Monuments

Easter Island in the Polynesian Triangle, Pacific Ocean, Gateway of India in Mumbai, India, Gol Gumbaz in Karnataka, India

Sculpture

Famous Sculptures

Pictographs

Petroglyphs

Figurines

Fossils

Absent

Formation

Basalt forms when lava reaches the Earth's surface near an active volcano. The temperature of lava is between 1100 to 1250° C when it gets to the surface.

Comendite is a type of Igneous rock which is formed due to cooling and solidification of lava or magma. It may form with or without crystallization, either below the surface as intrusive rocks or on the surface as extrusive rocks.

Composition

Mineral Content

Olivine, Plagioclase, Pyroxene

Albite, Amphibole, Quartz

Compound Content

Aluminium Oxide, CaO, Iron(III) Oxide, FeO, Potassium Oxide, MgO, MnO, Sodium Oxide, Phosphorus Pentoxide, Silicon Dioxide, Titanium Dioxide

Al, Fe, Potassium Oxide

Transformation

Metamorphism

✔ ✘

Types of Metamorphism

Contact Metamorphism

Cataclastic Metamorphism, Regional Metamorphism

Weathering

✔ ✘

Types of Weathering

Biological Weathering

Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering

Erosion

✔ ✘

Types of Erosion

Coastal Erosion, Water Erosion

Properties

Physical Properties

Hardness

66-7

1 7

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Grain Size

Fine Grained

Medium Grained

Fracture

Conchoidal

Pervasive

Streak

White to Grey

Bluish Black

Porosity

Less Porous

Highly Porous

Luster

Dull

Compressive Strength

37.40 N/mm²92.40 N/mm²

0.15 450

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Cleavage

Toughness

2.3

Specific Gravity

2.8-32.38

0 8.4

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Transparency

Opaque

Density

2.9-3.1 g/cm³-9999 g/cm³

0 1400

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Thermal Properties

Specific Heat Capacity

0.84 kJ/Kg K0.79 kJ/Kg K

0.14 3.2

👆🏻

Resistance

Heat Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Wear Resistant

Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant

Reserves

Deposits in Eastern Continents

Asia

India, Russia

China

Africa

South Africa

East Africa

Europe

Iceland

Italy

Others

Deposits in Western Continents

North America

Canada, USA

South America

Brazil

Deposits in Oceania Continent

Australia

Queensland

All about Basalt and Comendite Properties

Know all about Basalt and Comendite properties here. All properties of rocks are important as they define the type of rock and its application. Basalt and Comendite belong to Igneous Rocks.Texture of Basalt is Glassy, Massive, Porphyritic, Scoriaceous, Vesicular whereas that of Comendite is Porphyritic. Basalt appears Dull and Soft and Comendite appears Foliated. The luster of Basalt is while that of Comendite is dull. Basalt is available in black, brown, light to dark grey colors whereas Comendite is available in blue, bluish - grey colors. The commercial uses of Basalt are an oil and gas reservoir, commemorative tablets, creating artwork, used in aquariums and that of Comendite are cemetery markers.